Wedding Planner Resume: Examples and Tips
Wedding planners assist couples in organizing and carrying out their weddings, working on every aspect, from the venue to flowers, activities, music and food. To succeed in this industry, a wedding planner should have a sense of style, a collaborative spirit, attention to detail, vendor connections, as well as strong coordinating and organizational abilities.
Use our resume tips and examples to plan and write a strong wedding planner resume.
Table of Contents
Featured Resume Example: Wedding Planner
Name: NATALIE KRAUSE
Address: City, State, Zip Code
Phone: 000-000-0000
E-Mail: email@email.com
PROFESSIONAL SUMMARY
Seasoned wedding planner bringing more than 13 years of experience. Expert in all elements of wedding planning, including vendor management, contract negotiations, timeline development and budget administration. Offers additional services including post-event logistics such as travel arrangements and accommodations for newlyweds.
WORK HISTORY
WEDDING PLANNER
03/2015 to Current
Company Name, City, State
- Plan over 20 extravagant weddings each year for wealthy clients with budgets of up to $2 million.
- Direct pace of wedding and reception through multitasking and liaising with vendors to carry out event as planned with little or no deviations.
- Manage day of events by monitoring the time and overseeing over 30 personnel including event staff members and security.
WEDDING PLANNER
06/2011 to 02/2015
Company Name, City, State
- Maintained a list of top vendors including live bands, photo booth services,
photographers/videographers, and wedding decorators. - Interviewed 2-5 clients each month to gather wedding details, provide an estimate, and create a detailed expense sheet to allocate budget.
- Arrived to wedding venue early to supervise all vendor set ups, answer questions, resolve any issues, and ensure set up is going according to plan.
WEDDING PLANNER
09/2007 to 06/2011
Company Name, City, State
- Planned wedding menus by carefully selecting appetizers, entrees and beverages according to event theme for up to 500 guests.
- Performed face-to-face meetings to finalize contract for services and event details.
- Confirmed permits, insurance, and notices needed for special wedding events.
SKILLS
- Vendor and contract negotiations
- Events logistics management
- Budget management
- Menu planning
- Wedding trends
- Team leadership
- Problem-solving
- Communication
EDUCATION
Bachelor of Arts : Meeting And Event Planning,City, State
Top 4 Characteristics of a Best-in-Class Wedding Planner Resume
- Summary In a few sentences, present your best aspects: your experience, professional accomplishments and relevant skills. Stick to traits and experiences that speak directly to what the job requires. For example: “Energetic Wedding Planner expert in all elements of wedding coordination, including contract negotiations, budget administration, and vendor management. Skilled at researching and finding best venues within budgetary constraints.”
- Skills List your skills in concise bullet points featuring both relevant hard (or practical) and soft skills. Hard skills include scheduling management, budgeting and financial planning, and expertise with software such as Microsoft Office and AllSeated. Important soft skills include a friendly demeanor, active listening, organizational skills, time management, superb written and verbal communication skills, and the ability to handle stressful situations.
- Work history Emphasize past accomplishments that complement the skills the employer is looking for, limiting yourself to the past 10 years of work experience. For example, if an employer is looking for a candidate who can handle multiple tasks simultaneously, a statement such as “Managed 20 catering staff and supply inventory for all-day wedding event” shows how you can handle simultaneous tasks efficiently.
- Education Include your highest credential (e.g., high school diploma or college degree), along with the name and location of the school where you received your credit. Include additional training or certifications you have such as Certified Wedding Planner (CWP) or Certified Wedding Specialist.
See Why My Perfect Resume is a 5-Star Resume Builder
Find the Right Template for Your Resume
Present your resume with a colorful yet professional design by using one of our employer-ready templates:
Pinstripe
This straightforward resume template uses color fonts and centered headers to make it a breeze to find each section. The layout is easy to customizable, depending on whether you want to emphasize skills or work history.
Centered
This layout highlights your summary using dotted lines, while the color bar for the header adds a touch of personality.
Artistic
This design uses colored dividing lines to organize each section, while the two-color approach to the header font makes a strong impression.
Do’s and Don’ts for Your Resume
- DO create an engaging elevator pitch for your summary. An “elevator pitch” is a summation of your best qualities, so it’s a perfect fit for your summary. Give a brief, crisp introduction of your capabilities, including the skills and experiences that make you an ideal fit for the specific job position. The object here is to grab the potential employer’s interest, and inspire them to read on. For example: “Seasoned wedding planner with 8+ years of experience in skillfully negotiating contracts and managing vendors. Recognized as a top planner in the field, with five-star rating in Yelp.” For more summary tips, see How to Craft a Perfect Summary Statement.
- DO tailor your resume for different jobs. Each job requires different tasks and skills, so don’t use the same resume for every job opportunity. Create different versions of your resume to match each job’s desired requirements. For example, one wedding planner job might focus on monitoring event activities, and making sure they comply with venue procedures, while another might put more emphasis on managing activities and inventory for a specific wedding venue. Adjust your resume to include skills and experiences that match the job. For example, you could list “managing event inventory” as a skill, or describe a previous work experience that focused on monitoring and managing events across different venues.
- DO review your resume before submission. Wedding planners are expected to take care of every little detail for a wedding — do the same for your resume. Read your resume multiple times, and be on the lookout for sloppy formatting, typos and other mistakes. This is also your chance to double-check the information you provide, and make sure it’s accurate. If you use our Resume Builder to create your resume, our tools will do the checking for you.
- DON’T forget to quantify your accomplishments. Even the most vital accomplishments can sound ordinary if they’re not explained using details and numbers. Give recruiters the best possible picture of your abilities by quantifying your achievements. For example, writing “Planned 25-30 large scale weddings for 300+ guests per year” is more illuminating than “Planned large-scale weddings.”
- DON’T make your resume too long. Your resume should be a snapshot of your top abilities and skills — not an essay. Stick to punchy bullet points and phrases to describe your qualifications, and don’t include irrelevant info that doesn’t matter to the job in question. Look to keep your resume to two pages at most.
- DON’T underrate the importance of soft skills. Soft skills may be “unseen” skills compared to practical abilities such as knowledge of software or budgeting abilities, but for a very personal event like a wedding, the personal touch is critical — and soft skills are your personal traits that describe how well you handle the personal side of business. Emphasize soft skills such as negotiation ability, conflict resolution, a positive approach, problem-solving abilities, and the ability to excel in high-stress situations. For more soft skill suggestions, visit our Top Resume Skills page.
Wedding Planner Resume FAQs
- 1. What format should you use for a wedding planner resume?
- 2. What hard and soft skills should be considered for a wedding planner resume?
- 3. How do you incorporate keywords in your resume?
- 4. What should you avoid in your resume?
- 5. How should your resume be crafted if you’re looking to ascend the career ladder?
1. What format should you use for a wedding planner resume?
Applicants with more than five years of job experience should opt for the chronological format for your resume, as this layout accommodates a detailed work history section that shows career accomplishments. The combination resume format is a good choice if you want to present a blend of appropriate skills and work experiences. If you have little or no experience, go for the functional resume format, which emphasizes job-specific abilities and training via an expanded skills section.
2. What hard and soft skills should be considered for a wedding planner resume?
| Hard skills: | Soft skills: |
| Budget management | Time management |
| Vendor management | Negotiation skills |
| Digital marketing skills | Calm demeanor |
| Supply management | Attentive listener |
| Networking skills | Attention to detail |
| Business administration | Decision-making ability |
| Event logistics management | Interpersonal skills |
| Scheduling | Team player |
| Sponsorship development | Creative planning |
| Venue management and selection | Knowledge of wedding customs |
| Proficiency in wedding planning software or apps such as The Wedding Planner |
| Hard skills: |
| Budget management |
| Vendor management |
| Digital marketing skills |
| Supply management |
| Networking skills |
| Business administration |
| Event logistics management |
| Scheduling |
| Sponsorship development |
| Venue management and selection |
| Proficiency in wedding planning software or apps such as The Wedding Planner |
| Soft skills: |
| Time management |
| Negotiation skills |
| Calm demeanor |
| Attentive listener |
| Attention to detail |
| Decision-making ability |
| Interpersonal skills |
| Team player |
| Creative planning |
| Knowledge of wedding customs |
3. How do you incorporate keywords in your resume?
Why worry about keywords? Because employers now often use applicant tracking systems (ATS) to scan resumes for the right phrases that are connected with the job. To find the right keywords, review the job listing and pick out critical phrases that define the job’s requirements, such as “full service planning and coordination” or “sharp negotiation skills.” Feature these keywords in your resume, and show how you’ve used them in previous jobs. For example, you could write “Negotiated with vendors to procure venues, caterers and photo booths to fit a variety of wedding budgets” as proof of your negotiation skills.
4. What should you avoid in your resume?
Don’t get too verbose in your sentences — go with bullet points and short phrases instead. Stay away from buzzwords and subjective adjectives that don’t carry much weight such as “amazing,” “incredible” or “special.” Don’t get caught using passive phrases like “was responsible for” or “was tasked with” when you should be using powerful action verbs like “Arranged,” “coordinated,” “managed” and “oversaw.”
5. How should your resume be crafted if you’re looking to ascend the career ladder?
Below are some achievements and training you could feature in your resume to help you get ahead:
- Highlight instances where your planning and quick decision-making resulted in project success.
- Examples of new specialties or skills you’ve taken on that help increase your effectiveness (e.g., project management certification or wedding planner workshops).
- Testimonials or recognitions you’ve received for superior work (you might want to feature these under a different section titled “Testimonials” — try to keep each testimonial concise).
- Give examples of projects where you overcame challenges (change in venue, arranging a wedding on a budget) and excelled.
- AIPB Certified Bookkeeper
- NACPB Licensed Bookkeeper
- QuickBooks Online ProAdvisor Certification
Pair Your Resume with a Matching Cover Letter
Resume Examples for the Next Step in Your Event Planning Career
- Event Coordinator
- Event Coordinator Assistant
- Event Manager
- Event Planner
- Event Specialist
- Events Team Leader
